The emotional adventure continues in Bloody Disgusting’s Life is Strange 2 Episode 3 review.
Life Is Strange 2’s episode three, Wastelands, takes place some months after the events of episode two. The Diaz brothers find themselves living in a hippie commune and working on a pot farm, saving their pay to afford the rest of their trip to Mexico. It’s as Life Is Strange 2 hits its halfway point that it offers its most emotionally compelling chapter to date.
Mechanically the game continues to operate as it always has; as Sean, you’ll partake in several small fetch quests, as well as other tasks like playing with throwing knives and trimming marijuana buds. With Wastelands taking place in the outdoors, there’s also a variety of interactions Sean can have throughout the camp and its inhabitants; it’s the latter which makes for one of the episode’s best components.
So much of the focus in Life Is Strange 2 has been about the relationship of the brothers, but in episode three, we get to see each of them connect with others. Having been introduced as brief side characters in episode two, both Cassidy and Finn have more prominent roles in Wastelands. Whether it’s Sean with Cassidy or Daniel with Finn, there are a plethora of heartwarming moments watching as the group enjoys being together. There’s a campfire scene that takes place later on in the game and makes for an intimate moment between the friends as they all share personal stories. Outside of Cassidy and Finn, the rest of the cast does an excellent job of providing a mix of emotion, humor, and drama.
Where Wastelands also succeeds is in how it further explores the bond between Sean and Daniel. Even though the brothers still share a few touching moments with one another, dynamics have somewhat shifted between them at this point in the story. We see Daniel becoming more fed up having to always listen to his older brother, and we see Sean becoming stressed with Daniel not listening to him. There’s one scene where the two are arguing and we see Daniel pull off a pretty impressive move with his power; this leaves Sean in a state of shock, Daniel walking off defiantly. The scene makes for one of the numerous examples where conflict arises between the brothers, adding more depth to their relationship.
While the gameplay aspects of Wastelands aren’t anything new, the episode does offer the most interesting and challenging choices thus far in Life Is Strange 2. In particular, the episode’s ending is an absolute rush of drama; even though it can play out in different ways, the final moments are enough to have one’s jaw drop.
Overall, Wastelands is a satisfying experience and an excellent step up in the story of Life Is Strange 2. Given the episode’s ending, I cannot imagine what will even come next. The Diaz brothers, along with the rest of the cast, make Wastelands the strongest chapter so far in the story, offering great emotion and characters.
Life is Strange 2 Episode 1 & Episode 2 reviews
Life is Strange 2 Episode 3 review code provided by the writer.
Life is Strange 2 Episode 3 is out now